William Bartram was an American naturalist and artist that connects to Chris McCandless in many ways. Bartram was born April 9th, 1739. He is famous for his travels to eight different states and his writings about his adventure. He traveled to North and South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Tennessee. Bartram's motivation to make this journey was to learn about the nature surrounding him and to respect it. This relates to Chris because he simply wanted to go into the wild, which he didn't think people respected enough ,and he wanted to leave civilization. Also Bartram wrote about all his experiences just like Chris did during his journey. Along Bartram's journey he met a man named Lachlan McIntosh. Bartram became good friends with McIntosh and his family, and he stayed several days with them. This is another connection to Chris because Chris also stayed with many people along his adventure. For example, he stayed with Wayne Westerberg for an extended amount of time, and he aslo stayed with Jan and Bob Burres. Bartram and Chris are similar because they both wanted to live in the wild, they both wrote about their experiences for other people to read and learn more about, and they both met many people along the way and stayed with these people for periods of time.
The Travels of William Bartram. Bartram Trail Conference, 9 July 2009. Web. 22 April 2010.
"William Bartram in Georgia." The New Georgia Encyclopedia. Georgia Humanities Council, 28 Oct. 2009. Web. 22 April 2010.
The Travels of William Bartram. Bartram Trail Conference, 9 July 2009. Web. 22 April 2010.
"William Bartram in Georgia." The New Georgia Encyclopedia. Georgia Humanities Council, 28 Oct. 2009. Web. 22 April 2010.
Chris Steiner